Public Statements

Fortenberry Statement on President's State of the Union Address

Statement

Congressman Jeff Fortenberry tonight made the following statement after President Obama's State of the Union address:

"The President rightly commended our troops at the beginning of his speech and at the end, when he laid down a reasonable and responsible plan for our strategy in Afghanistan.

"He also stressed a new focus on manufacturing, reviving the 'made in the USA label,' and expanding upon the important progress we've made in clean energy production and conservation. It is very hard to understand, though, why the President will not lay out a specific course for controlling spending. Taking the debt seriously, and restoring fiscal order, will help ease economic uncertainty and create new opportunities for American families. We must work together to fight against the overspending problem in Washington. It is crushing our economy. We must find an appropriate solution -- and the House of Representatives cannot do this alone.

"Perhaps the most overlooked line will be that the making of a man is not the ability to conceive a child, but the courage to raise that child. Strong families do make a strong nation."